Manufacture of paper and like bags with attached flat handles



J. CLASS Feb. 10,- 1910 MANUFACTURE OF'IAPER AND LIKE BAG'S WITH ATTACHED FLAT HANDLES Filed'Feb.- 20, 1967 United States Patent 3,494,264 MANUFACTURE OF PAPER AND LIKE BAGS WITH ATTACHED FLAT HANDLES Jean Class, Strasbourg, Bas-Rhin, France, assignor to Societe dite: les Ateliers de Constructions Meeaniques C. & A. Holweg, S.a.r.l., Strasbourg, France, a corporation of France Filed Feb. 20, 1967, Ser. No. 617,133 Claims priority, application France, Oct. 21, 1966,

9 The portion of the term of the patent subsequent to Apr. 22, 1986, has been disclaimed Int. Cl. B31b 1/46 US. Cl. 93-35 1 Claim ABSTRACT OF THE DISCLOSURE The present invention relates to the manufacture in continuity of bags of paper and like materials with attached flat handles, on a rotary machine with a handlemaking device, by a process in which a travelling web of material is provided with perforation lines and the handles are stuck in correct positions on the web, the latter is formed into a tube, and the bags are formed with the 'bag bottoms foremost and the handles are formed by folding down to the rear.

BRIEF SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION The present invention relates to the manufacture of paper and like bags, in general, and to such manufacture in one single operation and continuously of bags of paper or similar material having attached flat handles.

It is known that the manufacture of bags having attached flat handles, which generally is carried out in two successive phases in which the handles after their actual manufacture, are attached and deposited on the walls of the bag in an operation subsequent to the manufacture thereof, can today be effected in one single operation continuously by utilisation of the process as described in US patent application Ser. No. 580,405, filed Sept. 19, 1966, now Patent No. 3,439,591, dated Apr. 22, 1969, producing especially a type of bag comprising two flat handles stuck upon the inner walls with reinforcing strips.

The process according to patent application Ser. No. 580,405 provides more especially, on the strip of bag material unwinding from a reel, the formation of two transverse slots which subsequently facilitate the separation of the tubular sections, across which slots are deposited and stuck handles formed by a specially designed apparatus.

Nevertheless, with a view to increasing the industrial speed of the production of bags having flat attached handles on the machine carrying out the mentioned process, it appears advantageous to replace the previously utilized alternating movements by a rotational system. However, in order to be able to increase still further the speed of the entire of the machine for manufacturing bags with attached flat handles, it also appears appropriate to make use of a bag machine of the perforation type in combination with the device for manufacturing the handles, the above stated bag machine type permitting, by its actual principle, all the slotting operations to be obviated.

This present process for the combination of a rotary machine of the perforation type for manufacturing bags and of the device for manufacturing fiat handles according to patent application Ser. No. 580,405 consists essentially in the provision of the following improvements constituting the objects of the present invention:

(1) The omission of the two perpendicular slots provided according to the patent application Ser. No. 580,405

3,494,264 Patented Feb. 10, 1970 ice to permit the separation of the sections of the bag-formmg tube by a subsequent cut on either side of the attached handles, and the replacement of these slots by perforation lines provided previously in the strip of bag material when still open and in the course of unwinding.

This substitution permits of effecting this subsequent separation into sections by a simple pulling apart effected by speed difference.

(2) A reversing device ensures the depositing of the handles on the face of the strip in the correct position, with the arms of the handles directed in the direction of advance of the strip, whereas at emergence from the manufacturing system the arms are oriented towards the rear, due to the folding over of the arms.

This reversal is essential, as the tube which is to constitute the bag moves with the bag bottom part foremost.

(3) The formation of the handles is effected over two drums of very small diameter, one of which is displaceable laterally in relation to the other, the folded paper strip being drawn by a powerful drive by an auxiliary traction device and cut by cutters rotating in the direction of movement.

Thus it is easily possible to regulate the device according to the width of the bag, to avoid all jamming up of the freshly glued strip, and to obtain a peripheral speed of the drums proportional to the much smaller diameter, all while obtaining a very high production speed.

(4) The depositing of the handles on the unwinding strip is effected by freely rotatably mounted rollers which receive a movement which applies them to the arms of the handles to position them during movement, the peripheral speed of which rollers accords automatically with the speed of the strip.

The arrangement permits the correct and exact placement upon the strip of paper, which is subsequently to be transformed into bags, of the newly manufactured handle which turn in the direction opposite to that of the unwinding of the strip and which comes to abut against a stop in order to receive, at that moment with respect to its position in relation to the perforation, an acceleration to achieve the same speed and direction as the paper strip, while being strongly applied to the latter.

(5) Blowing of compressed air on to the handle arms ensures their correct and truly flat deposition.

This blowing avoids all danger of poor contact.

(6) The mandrel for formation of the tube is provided with a flexible guide and has a cut-away portion at its end. The guide and the cut-away portion facilitate the passage of the handles.

(7) The possibility of completing the perforation machine by one or more additional drums which effect the opening of the bottom of the bag.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF VIEWS IN DRAWING With these and other objects in view which will become apparent in the following detailed description, the present invention, shown by example only, will be clearly understood in connection with the accompanying drawing, in which:

FIG. 1 is a plan view of the device disclosing the formation of the bag;

FIG. 2 is an elevational view disclosing the correct position for depositing the handle on the strip;

FIG. 3 shows in stages the formation and reversal of each flat handle;

FIG. 4 is an elevational view, partly in section, which illustrates the formation of the tube diagrammatically;

FIG. 5 is a view disclosing the slot to be provided at the end of the tube-forming mandrel; and

FIG. 6 is a top plan view partly broken away showing :he rollers turning and depositing the handles, as well as he blower.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION With reference to the drawing, and particularly to FIG. I, a' strip 1 of paper or similar material is unwound from :he reel 2 and is provided with transverse perforations 3 which, by pulling the sheet apart facilitated by a speed lifference, permits a subsequent separation into sections 9f a tube 4 formed at portion 5 by mandrel 6, which is nrovided at its end with a slot or recess 7, of sufficient zvidth for the passage of the handle and of such a depth hat in the region of the edge 8 the paper is not firmly ap plied to the plate. This recess is necessary both for the formation of flat tubes and for the formation of tubes with bellows folds. It avoids the risk of unsticking of the iandles attached to the interior of the bag, which have a :endency to hook themselves to the edge of the mandrel.

However, as shown in FIG. 4, the mandrel 6, which is single for flat tubes and double for tubes having bellows Folds, is furthermore provided with one or more guides 9 of flexible steel, one of the ends of which continues to a point below the mandrel.

The handles 10 must be deposited and stuck on the ;trip before the formation of the tube, in the position 3f the arms as represented in FIG. 2 in relation to the lnwinding direction of the strip, since the bag is formed 3y advancing the tube with the bottom 11 of the bag foremost (FIG. 1).

The handle is formed on the rotary machine in the direction of travel by folding down to the rear, and thus the arms are situated as shown at 12 in FIG. 3.

FIG. 3 diagrammatically illustrates the handle initially positioned on the upper part of a drum or roller 13, with the arms directed to the rear in relation to the direction of rotation 14 of the drum, and after the drum rotates 180, the handle is situated in the correct position 10 with the arms directed frontwards and ready to be deposited on the strip.

The auxiliary device for the traction of the folded paper strips which are intended to become the handles which are pushed along the generatrix of a cylinder until the moment when they are cut and grasped by rearwardly folding grippers, comprise two rollers, a lower one driven at a speed slightly higher than the delivery speed of the strip, and an upper one which is freely rotatable, so that there is a permanent slip between the strip and these rollers and also a significant traction between these rollers on the one hand and a powerful drive cylinder. At the moment when the strip is cut by the two cutters, formation grippers grasp it and entrain it perpendicularly to its initial path. It is at this moment that the auxiliary device frees it by a slight lifting of the freely rotatable upper rollers.

The two handle-forming drums, disposed laterally with regulable spacing according to the width of the bag to be produced (as indicated by the double arrows in FIG. 6), effect the reversal of the handles by rotation through 180 as specified above, and these handles, thus placed correctly, are released and in abutment against a stop which is a simple piece of sheet metal, this occurring before the drum has reached its lowest point.

The device which imparts movement to the handle, the acceleration of which at the correct moment, with respect to its position in relation to the perforation of the strip of bag material, provides it with the same speed and direction of movement as the strip while applying it securely to the latter, is composed essentially of two freely rotatable rollers each applied to one of the arms of the handle. These rollers are mounted on two levers disposed side by side, which through an appropriate mechanism receive a movement such that the geometric locus of their lowest point describes a curve ensuring the placing of the rollers above the arms of the handles, in order to bear upon them and seat them on the unwinding paper strip, while effecting an accompanying movement.

This appropriate mechanism can be composed of a fixed shaft with two similarly fixed earns, a rotating cam and an oscillating shaft the movement of which is controlled from the rotating cam through a system of levers. Moreover the fixed cam can be replaced by a system of connecting rods imparting an approximately identical movement to the rollers but with greater smoothness of operation.

It should also be noted that it is not necessary to have an extremely precise movement of the freely rotatable rollers, as their peripheral speed conforms of its own accord with the speed of the strip.

The nozzles and blower 15 for blowing compressed air on the arms, which ensure the truly flat depositing of the handles when the roller carries out its movement in the direction of the drum, are disposed beside these rollers and directed obliquely.

I claim:

1. A process for the continuous manufacture in one simple operation of bags of paper material having attached fiat handles, comprising the steps of unwinding a strip of bag material from a reel,

forming perforation lines in said unwinding strip of bag material, forming two substantially U-shaped handles from a flat strip by folding the ends constituting arms, of said flat strip in a rearward direction opposite the direction of advance of said strip of bag material,

depositing said two rearwardly facing handles on the top of two rollers, the latter being laterally spaced and freely rotatably mounted and disposed substantially 0n the face of said unwinding strip of bag material at the bottom of said rollers,

depositing said handles with said arms on said face of said strip of bag material with said arms being oriented in the direction of advance of said strip by freely rotating said rollers substantially with the peripheral speed of said rollers conforming automatically with the unwinding speed of said strip of bag material,

blowing compressed air onto said arms of said handle on said strip of bag material in order to ensure the correct and truly flat deposition of said handles, folding said unwinding strip of bag material with said handles deposited thereon over a mandrel extending in the direction of advance of said strip of bag material and having a guide which facilitates contact of the handles and a recess at its forwardmost portion with respect to said direction of advance of a width at least as wide as the width of said handles,

and separating said strip of bag material along said perforation lines.

References Cited UNITED STATES PATENTS 1,762,857 6/1930 Eaton. 2,224,040 12/ 1940 Eaton. 2,533,642 12/1950 Vergobbi. 2,586,514 2/1952 Canno. 2,605,195 7/1952 Boughton. 2,661,582 12/1953 Hansel. 3,079,144 2/1963 Frei. 3,424,067 l/ 1969 Blair.

WAYNE A. MORSE, 111., Primary Examiner US. 'Cl. X.R. 93-8, 84 

